Cortland captures 4th straight NWGC title; Gaffney claims first place
BLOOMFIELD, CONN. – Five Cortland golfers finished in the Top 10, leading the Red Dragons to the 2023 Northeast Women's Golf Conference (NWGC) Championship and a berth in the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament.
Cortland captured the conference title during the two-day, 36-hole NWGC Championship Tournament held on Saturday and Sunday, April 22-23, at Wintonbury Hills Golf Course in Bloomfield, Conn. A total of 42 golfers competed in the Par 70, 5600-yard-plus event.
The victory marked the fourth straight NWGC title for Cortland and earned the Red Dragons their second consecutive automatic qualifier that comes with league crown.
As the NWGC champion, Cortland will compete at the NCAA III National Championship Tournament May 9-12 at the Mission Inn Resort and Club in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla.
The Red Dragons put together a two-round score of 626 (309-317), finishing ahead of runner-up St. John Fisher (351-361) which posted a 713. Suffolk claimed third place with a 718 (354-364), while Utica took fourth with a 748 (374-374). Husson (397-374 / 771) and Westfield State (489-484 / 973) finished fifth and sixth, respectively.
The NWGC consists of 15 member institutions with 12 members having representatives competing at the conference championship this season.
Cortland's quintet of golfers claimed five of the top seven spots in the standings, led by tournament champion Amanda Gaffney (Williamsville/Williamsville East) who also was named the Player of the Year and to the All-NWGC First Team.
The Top 10 finishers at the NWGC Championship are considered All-Conference with 1-5 earning First Team honors and 6-10 collecting Second Team accolades.
Gaffney, a graduate student, won the title with a 153 that included a 75 on Saturday and a 78 on Sunday. She parred 25 of 38 holes (14 Saturday, 11 Sunday).
Sophomore Claudia Winterberg (Harrisburg, NC/Hickory Ridge) finished second with a 155. She led after Day 1 with a 74, including a birdie and 13 pars, and carded an 81 on Sunday with a birdie and five pars. She also was named All-NWGC First Team.
Sophomore Sophie Oristian (North Potomac, MD/Quince Orchard) tied for third place with Suffolk junior Ellie Yarbrough (Killingworth, CT/Lake Oswego) at 158 as both players earned First Team honors.
Oristian's opening round of 80 featured a birdie and seven pars, and despite the tougher conditions on Sunday, she improved to a 78 with a birdie and 11 pars.
Yarbrough posted a pair of 79's on the Par 70 course, scoring five birdies and 13 pars.
Husson senior Lindsay Cote (Newport, ME/Waterville) rounded out the All-Conference First Team by taking fifth with a two-day score of 166. She posted an 88 on Day 1 that left her tied for 11th but roared back with a 78 on Day 2 to climb into the Top 5. Cote registered 17 pars over the 36 holes.
Cortland freshman Sarah Wiggins (Carson City, NV/Carson) earned NWGC Rookie of the Year honors as the top rookie finisher at the tournament. She placed sixth with a 167, starting with an 87 on Saturday and improving to an 80 on Sunday. She parred seven holes each day and had a birdie on Sunday.
Red Dragon junior Kristina Visniesky (Buffalo/Orchard Park) placed seventh with a 168, including an 80 on Saturday that featured a birdie and seven pars. Both Wiggins and Visniesky earned All-NWGC Second Team honors.
St. John Fisher landed three players on the All-Conference Second Team squad in sophomore Michaela Eichas (Hilton, NY), senior Gabrielle Papale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) and sophomore Bella McEnroe (Meadeville, PA/Meadville).
Eichas placed eighth with a two-day score of 172 (81-91) that featured seven pars, while Papale took ninth with a 174 (87-87). She parred eight holes over the two days.
McEnroe tied for 10th with Utica junior Carly Stefanini (Framingham, MA/Brooks School) as each player fired a 178. McEnroe had seven pars while producing an 87 on Day 1 and a 91 on Day 2.
Stefanini had maybe the most memorable round on Sunday when she posted a birdie and three pars on Day 2 after recording five pars on Day 1. She totaled 178 on an 88 opening round and a 90 closing 18.
What made the round memorable on Sunday is that the junior finished virtually in the dark in the final group and powered her way to a share of the last piece of hardware.
Canton sophomore Gwendolyn Glennon (Haines Falls, NY/Hunter-Tannersville) was the recipient of the Elite Academic Award given out to the student-athlete who boasts the highest GPA among all participants at the NWGC Championship.
A 4.00 student who majors in Homeland Security, Glennon finished 18th at the NWGC Championship after posting a 188.She had an 89 on Day 1 and closed out the event with a 99 on Day 2. She actually had a pair of birdies through the first nine holes and finished with two birdies and four pars during the tournament.